


Home for the Holidays

by Petenshi



Category: Gundam Wing
Genre: Gen, Holidays
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-09
Updated: 2013-12-09
Packaged: 2018-01-04 05:03:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,531
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1076843
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Petenshi/pseuds/Petenshi
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Trapped on delayed shuttle flight, Duo has time to reflect on his relationships and life.  Also the lack of vacations and chocolate chip cookies.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Home for the Holidays

I looked up from the datapad in front of me as the attendant approached with the drink cart and flagged her down. “Coffee, please. Black.”

Due to holiday travelers and weather complications, my shuttle was running several hours late. I was feeling cranky from lack of sleep and working on this report of the situation on L1 wasn’t helping. Normally I’d have Heero here to help share the work and keep me company but my partner had been sidelined to help correct a data breach in Preventer’s server mainframe. Damn inconvenient and a pain in the ass to boot.

I took the coffee with a thanks and went back to the report with a sigh.

“I remember those days, slogging through school work getting by on caffeine.” The older woman sitting next to me smiled, “Of course, it was more energy drinks and soda, I didn’t hit the coffee till I got to college.”

Confused, I looked up and she pointed toward the datapad in my hand. “Trying to get your homework done before the holiday break?”

I felt my lips twitch and quickly smoothed out my expression. “You could say that.” 

I wasn’t wearing my uniform jacket; shuttles are notoriously overheated so the Preventer issue jacket was folded in my duffle bag. I suppose I looked like any other seventeen or eighteen year old dressed in a tee-shirt and slacks coming home on break.

“What subject are you working on?” 

A drug cartel and sex ring operation that was threatening to spread from L1 to L2. The fucking DeCarsio family attempting to take advantage of L2’s poverty and lack of infrastructure to increase their power.

I considered the datapad in front of me and shrugged. “Politics.” 

“Well we still have three more hours, do you have much left to go?” She smiled reassuringly, “I know how good it feels to be able to take a break without any other obligations or assignments hovering on the edge of your mind.”

“Um…” I didn’t want to lie to her but I didn’t really want to get into a long explanation either so I settled for, “Nearly done.”

She pursed her lips, nodded and then settled back further in her chair. “Good.”

A vacation. Now there was a rare thing indeed. When was the last time I had one of those? I still wasn’t sure how things had quite turned out the way they had, one minute I’m minding my own business and the next I’m up to my eyeballs in united ratifications this and world armistice that. 

I glanced down at the report, noting where I had marked a section for Heero to read. My lack of vacation was his fault. Not that he was having much fun right now, either.

Heero Yuy.

It always came back to Heero.

\---

The trouble with helping to save the world is trying to figure out what to do with yourself afterwards. Your goal in life is now reached, finish line crossed, hair chopped off in honor and mourning for those lost. And that leaves you where exactly? 

I’m not saying I’m bitter, that came across sounding bitter, didn’t it? I’m just saying I felt....not lost because that makes me sound like a pansy…at loose ends. Yeah. Loose ends.

So world saved, job done. Pat on the back. Now what? Well if you’re Duo Maxwell, God of Death Extraordinaire, you do what you know how to do best. For me, that’s moving stealthy. And if you’re any good at it (which I am) then you can get paid to do it (which I do) and that makes you a Transporter. Yes, with the capital T.

A Transporter, by the way, is polite-speak for He Who Moves Things Possibly Illegal in Nature. 

Where was I? Oh yeah, big hero. One minute I was fighting a battle and the next minute I wasn't. Blink and you miss it.

Welcome to the New World, Mr. Maxwell. Please take off your hat and don't forget to wipe your shoes.

I can see why Preventers would call to someone after all that. It’s like the big hero job but without the shitty part where half the world is out to get you. However, you did have to follow all the rules. Which sucked.

I guess I could understand why Wufei joined Preventers. He'd always struck me as the Boy Scout type. I, on the other hand, had no idea what I was doing here.

"I'd like to state for the record, this was not my idea."

My reflection in the mirror had little to say on the matter and I sighed, drying my hands and tossing the paper towel in the trashcan. I should have taken a clue from Heero, who was probably off somewhere being Mr. Mysterious. But I hadn't, instead I had answered Wufei's email and now found myself standing inside Preventer's main branch office counting the minutes till I could leave.

I hadn't done anything that could be considered illegal in at least a week and there was no way they could know about it anyway. Wufei's email hadn't been very specific, something about a job and requiring my help. I was bored enough that I'd fired a reply back, agreeing to meet and at least hear him out.

\---

Oh fateful decisions. Wufei knew what he was doing, the sneaky bastard. Dangle something juicy in front of me and then watch me go for it, hook, line and sinker.

I saved the report and shoved the datapad in the bag under my seat, stretching as far as I could. I groaned and then slumped down again. Two more hours. I pondered getting another coffee, chances were as soon as the shuttle touched down Sally Po or Wufei would have a car waiting and I’d be debriefing for who knew how many hours. 

On second thought I might be better off getting some sleep while I could. Pulling out my phone I composed a quick message to Heero.

_How many IT virgins will you have to sacrifice to the Technology Gods in order to meet me at the airport?_

The woman next to me opened her eyes; “You won’t be in range to get any service until we’re another hour in, dear.” 

True, unless you were using Preventer satellites not available to the general public. I angled the phone so she couldn’t see Heero’s incoming message. “Yeah, I just like playing Solitaire.”

She nodded and closed her eyes again, apparently satisfied.

_Two from IT and Fran from Customer Service._

I could just see Heero reviewing the people around him for who was being the most annoying or incompetent and then happily chucking them in a volcano.

_Chocolate chip cookie Fran? You can’t sacrifice her!_

I slouched in my seat and thumbed through the various games on the phone waiting for Heero to reply, if he even would. The last time we talked, he’d been buried in computer code and IT personnel all pointing fingers at other members of the department. He’d sounded very pissed and close to chucking the lot of them out the nearest window.

“Do you think they have any chocolate chip cookies on this flight?” 

The woman next to me smiled and opened her eyes, “You could always ask, sometimes they do hand out those little bags of cookies instead of the usual pretzels.” She tsked and shook her head slightly, “I always thought it was ridiculous they got rid of the peanuts just because some people had nut allergies. Honestly, if you’re allergic to them, don’t take the bag when offered. Now we all have to eat dry pretzels instead.”

I laughed. “You sound like a friend of mine. I guess I can wait till we land, I’d rather have a fresh hot cookie, anyway.”

“I confess I always eat too much of the dough and never have room for the cookies,” she whispered conspiratorially. “But I agree, after all these delays you deserve more than a stale cookie. And certainly something better than a nasty old pretzel!” She hurumphed and then pulled out a crossword.

_The lady next to me doesn’t approve of pretzels either._

This time the reply was almost instantaneous. 

_Fucking pretzels._

Still grinning I called up a game that required me to slash various flying fruit but avoid bombs. 

\--- 

Preventer Headquarters were housed in an old airplane hangar. They’d redone the floors with wood and painted the walls white but the size and space design meant Wufei didn’t really have an office, but he didn’t have a cubicle either. I looked around approvingly. It was open, but the way shelving had been arranged, it created the appearance of a private space.

Wufei’s desk sat pushed up facing Sally Po’s. They each had a computer but shared a phone. She was eating a sandwich at her desk while thumbing through some files and occasionally scrolling past whatever was on her screen. I gave her a wink and she smiled back.

“Duo.” I was pleased by how pleased Wufei seemed to see me, if that makes any sense. It had been some time since we’d last spoke and while we hadn’t parted on bad terms, we hadn’t really parted on great terms either.

“Hey man, what’s up?”

He looked good, in fact despite the Preventer uniform he seemed less…starchy than before. Hair still pulled back neatly, posture still perfect but he carried himself with more ease and he was certainly more free with his smiles.

“You cut your hair.” He gestured towards his own head and then paused, expression sliding into faint concern.

I smiled and shrugged. “It was time. No more wars, right?”

The warm understanding that seemed to flood his expression caught me off balance and I shifted uncomfortably. “So you said you needed my help?”

“I need something transported. Quietly.”

“And what do I get out of it?”

“Aside from a bad ass jacket and shiny badge?”

Sally Po snorted but didn’t look up from her datapad. 

“You get me.”

I turned and eyed the speaker up and down. He lounged against the shelf, hands in his pockets and eyed me back. I beamed and clapped my hands.

“Well, well. Do you come in a package tied with a bow that I get to unwrap?”

“Hmm…I wonder.” Heero Yuy smirked, taking a step forward.

“Yuy, you sly old dog!” I burst out laughing and lunged forward to wrap him up in a hug, thumping him on the back before letting go. “So this is what you’ve been up to!”

\---

_I’m not going to get out of here in time to meet you. However, I may have frightened IT too much because Une is picking you up. Now._

I whistled quietly and then shot a guilty look at the woman next to me.

_What did you do?_

_I shot Jameson’s computer multiple times with my service revolver._

The quickness of his response told me Heero was still pissed and not feeling the slight bit guilty. Whatever had set him off must have been a doozy.

_Jameson?_

I racked my brain trying to picture all of the minions in IT and came up with a vague image of a man with fluffy red hair.

_Left handed skinny guy with round glasses and red hair._

I remembered him; he’d often seemed a little off. He had that annoying habit of snapping his fingers constantly when talking to you.

_Oh him. Why?_

_He was secretly running two computers to play war games online. Crashed all the servers. Knocked every single printer offline, not to mention the entire building’s Internet. Idiot._

Woah. Suddenly I was glad I was on a flight several miles away from headquarters when that went down. Jameson would be lucky if Une didn’t can his ass.

_Yikes. Try not to kill him._

_Can’t, Wufei took him away. Got to go, I have three more servers to reset._

_Roger that. See you in twenty._

I stuck my phone back in my pocket and leaned back, grinning a little. It sounded like I wasn’t the only one in need of a vacation.

The shuttle touched down and I started to gather up my things. The woman next to me sat patiently with her hands clasped.

“Are you coming home or visiting people for the holidays?” I asked, hoping she wasn’t heading off somewhere alone. I’d done that for several years and it was fine but I’d found better.

It wasn’t until Heero that I realized how lonely I’d been.

She smiled and stood as our turn to disembark came and we slowly made our way down the aisle. “Yes, my daughter is picking me up. I spend every Christmas with her and my lovely grandchildren. Whom I won’t bore you with pictures of…” She laughed and shook her head. “I swore I would never become one of those old ladies.”

I smiled back, “I wouldn’t have minded.”

We stepped off the shuttle and I reached over to steady her arm as she walked down the steps. “You’re a sweet boy. Look there’s my family.”

I looked over at a woman waiting patiently while two girls hopped up and down waving frantically.

\---

“You ever think about the family you might have had?”

Heero and I were standing on the loading dock; watching the cargo I’d been entrusted to transport, reunite with his family. He’d been held prisoner for five years on a remote satellite, forced to build weapons until the Preventers had staged a rescue.

Heero turned to look at me, his expression odd and then he shrugged. “Not really, I don’t know what it’s like to have something like that.” He nodded toward the group hugging and crying. “I just know what I have now and what I’ve made for myself.”

“And that’s enough?” I couldn’t help the skepticism that crept into my voice, noting the intensity of the reunion in front of us.

He smiled and bumped my shoulder with his. “Of course. I got to meet Wufei and Trowa and Quatre. They’re my family now. And you. I get to keep you, Duo. Don’t need much more than that.”

I swallowed and nodded slowly. “Right. Well there is that.”

He just laughed.

\---

Une was waiting, just like Heero had promised. She seemed exasperated and relieved to seem me, which was an odd look on her. Now was probably not the best time to broach the subject of time off.

I turned to wave goodbye to my travel companion but she had already trotted over to Une and reached out to shake her hand.

“Your son worked hard on his paper the entire flight. Such a nice, polite boy. I wish more boys his age were so well behaved.”

Une opened her mouth and then closed it, turning to me with a raised eyebrow. “Duo?” 

The woman nodded and smiled, then reached up to pat me gently on the cheek. “Have a lovely holiday, my dear.”

I watched in amusement as she climbed into a waiting car and then turned to grin at Une. Maybe the timing wasn’t as bad as I thought.

“So _Mom_ , about that holiday?”


End file.
